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Reuben's kidneys

He is home now and on lots of meds and a special kidney diet.
He has picked up no end, and his breath no longer smells.
I go back to the vet tomorrow but have just noticed a large lump (almost egg sized) on hte back of his neck. it is soft and doesnt worry him if i press it.

im hoping it is maybe a reaction to an antibiotic injection as it is in the right place at the scruff of the neck.

The lump seems to have almost lost all its innards now, last bit is yellow and and bloody. I dont want to give him a bath as he shivers so much anyway, but the clear stuff sticks like raw eggwhite.

He is walking about more today, and seems quite interested in what is going on up on the worktops, but still wont eat his kidney diet. Im sure he would eat other stuff, but I cant give him stuff like that

Do you know what his kidney values are now? What you describe is very typical - many dogs in kidney failure won't eat the prescription kidney food - it's not very palatable. That is why the yahoo k9kidneydiet group started - many people have had success with home prepared kidney diets. At this point, it's important that he eats. Here are some lower phosphorus items that you can offer:

Green tripe

Vanilla wafers (these are human cookies) - (my CRF Cavalier lived on vanilla wafers for about ten days once - this is a low phosphorus item that they will often eat, esp. because it seems like a treat and is sweet)

Egg whites - very good source of high quality protein, very low phosphorus - I just put them in the microwave and poached them. Egg yolk is very high in phosphorus so just feed the whites

Meat baby food - can't feed long term but can use for a dog who is not eating at all

Boiled chicken thigh mixed with farina or cream of wheat. (White rice is a high phosphorus grain, most of us use glutinous rice, similar to sushi rice - it is sticky) Chicken thigh is lower in phosphorus than chicken breast and is higher in fat so not good for any dog prone to pancreatitis but good for kidney failure dog who can tolerate fats.

Do you have phosphorus binder which is given right after a meal? This helps the phosphorus move through the intestines without the kidneys having to remove this waste. Binders are either aluminum hydoxide or calcium carbonate (not as strong as the alum hydroxide).

If you home feed, you will have to add calcium to balance the meals - but you don't have to learn about that right away. Right now it's just important that he eats.

Have you talked to the vet about giving daily subq fluids at home? As I mentioned before, this for many has been the key to giving a good quality life and extending length of life considerably (years).

Is he taking antibiotics now? Those can cause loss of appetite in addition to the kidney failure (uremia/azotemia) causing loss of appetite. What are all the meds he is taking?

Thanks for the update Janice - it's great that Reuben is more interested in things, I'm sure his appetite will return now he's feeling a bit better.

If the kidney diet is a dry food, maybe try adding some hot water to it to make it smell and that might make him more interested. If it's a wet food, you could just put some in a bowl and stand it in boiling water to heat it to blood temperature.

Sounds like someone is having a rotten Christmas too Hope your vet can get back to you soon.

Perhaps you can just sponge Reuben down - even with dampened baby wipes and then blow dry him, rather than a full bath?